European Union Halts Trade Deal With United States In Wake Of New Tariffs

The fallout from the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision that overturned Trump administration International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariffs continued last week.

As Connecting the Dots reported previously, in the wake of the decision President Trump issued Section 122 tariffs totaling 15 percent on most imports into the United States. The president immediately exempted products from Canada and Mexico from the penalties and, a few days later, omitted products from Britain and the European Union (EU) as well. The move was not enough for policymakers on that continent, however. On Feb. 23, the European Parliament froze ratification of the EU’s trade deal with the United States.

Speaking with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, U.K. trade chief Peter Kyle “underlined his concerns about further uncertainty for business” and reinforced “the need to honor the U.K.-U.S. deal,” which was agreed to in May 2025.

The debate over how to issue refunds for the tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court also continued last week.  As The Associated Press reported, more than 1,000 companies, including FedEx, have already filed lawsuits seeking tariffs refunds.

President Trump responded to the lawsuits by stating on social media that his administration would oppose moves to refund the payments. Indeed, shortly after that statements was posted, the U.S. Department of Justice submitted a request to federal courts where the suits had been filed asking judges in those jurisdictions to wait up to four months before taking a procedural step to start refund proceedings. The pause would “allow the political branches an opportunity to consider options,” the DOJ argued. Read more at The New York Times.